The Secret Life of Anna Blanc

By: Jennifer Kincheloe

Narrated by: Moira Quirk

Length: 12 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's Summary

It's 1907 Los Angeles. Mischievous socialite Anna Blanc is the kind of young woman who devours purloined crime novels, but must disguise them behind covers of more domestically-appropriate reading. She could match wits with Sherlock Holmes, but in her world women are not allowed to hunt criminals. Determined to break free of the era's rigid social roles, Anna buys off the chaperone assigned by her domineering father and, using an alias, takes a job as a police matron with the Los Angeles Police Department. There she discovers a string of brothel murders, which the cops are unwilling to investigate. Seizing her one chance to solve a crime, she takes on the investigation herself. If the police find out, she'll get fired; if her father finds out, he'll disown her; and if her fiancé finds out, he'll cancel the wedding. Midway into her investigation, the police chief's son, Joe Singer, learns her true identity, and shortly thereafter she learns about blackmail. Anna must choose - either hunt the villain and risk losing her father, fiancé, and wealth, or abandon her dream and leave the killer on the loose.

©2015 Jennifer Kincheloe (P)2016 Jennifer Kincheloe

Wonderfully Researched and Delightfully Told

4.75★ Audiobook⎮The Secret Life of Anna Blanc was such an unexpected surprise! It started out good, became better as it went along, delivered a punch, and ended with a sizzle. I don’t think a mystery novel has ever made me laugh this much. Marvelously cheeky and delightfully inappropriate, The Secret Life of Anna Blanc exceeded my expectations and was anything but predictable.

Firstly, Anna Blanc rates 10/10 on the memorable character scale (something I just made up). My feelings for her ran the gamut during this audiobook, frequently swinging from chapter to chapter. She would go from annoying to amusing in a matter of seconds, but I never tired of her antics. Anna was a truly multifaceted character and an avant garde female protagonist, especially considering the ridiculously prudish ways of the early 1900s.

Kincheloe, a research scientist, definitely did her homework regarding the historical setting. Certain historically contextual details were so outrageous and unfathomable, that I knew they had to be fact. It took me a little while to acclimate to the uses of some specific terms and phrases, especially one like “making love”, which has come to mean something very different today. From what I could discern, it used to mean merely whispering “sweet nothings”. Oh, how times have changed.

Jennifer Kincheloe also won me over with her descriptive imagery. In example, saying a slap stung “like sandpaper on a sunburn”. Her writing easily painted pictures in my mind, though not always positive ones. At times, I sheepishly wished her descriptions hadn’t been quite so vivid, particularly the graphic postmortem descriptions. However, I cannot deny the effectiveness of their impact on the story. Kincheloe proved that writing does not have to be complex or superfluous to be beautiful. There was something mesmerizing about the directness of her prose. It made the story incredibly easy-to-follow and enjoy.

I’ve dubbed Kincheloe “Queen of the fake-out” for her ability to pull a bait-and-switch. I thought I knew where this mystery was going and I was fine with it. There was a trail of breadcrumbs leading in one direction, so followed it. It was a masterfully built mystery, so I had resigned myself to being okay with having figured it out beforehand. And then… AND THEN… Kincheloe pulled the literary football away at the last second as if I was Charlie Brown and she was Lucy. It was such an eloquent fake out that I can’t even be mad. In fact, I’m elated that Kincheloe was able to pull one over on me. I never saw it coming.

The historical setting of The Secret Life of Anna Blanc was reminiscent of The Luxe series by Anna Godbersen, which happens to be one of my favorites. The mystery element was similar to a Sherlock Holmes story, which I suspect was purposeful since Holmes is referenced multiple times in this novel. If you’re eager and willing to be blindsided by a mystery with an amusingly annoying protagonist, a love triangle that’s actually useful to the plot, and cheeky, grin-inducing writing, The Secret Life of Anna Blanc is for you.

Narration review: This was my first experience listening to Moira Quirk, but I hope it won’t be the last. She portrayed the naïve frivolity and rueful determination of Anna Blanc with aplomb. Anna was an increasingly dynamic character who constantly evolved throughout the novel. Quirk’s narration captured the growth of Anna’s character, but held tight to her innocence. Narrating this title gave Moira Quirk the opportunity to display her repertoire of accents. She provided the best vocal distinction for characters with marked accents. For others, especially unaccented male characters, a bit more characterization wouldn’t have hurt. But overall, she gave a lovely performance. I look forward to hearing more from her and Kincheloe soon. Here’s hoping for a sequel! ♣︎

➜ This audiobook was graciously gifted to me by its author, Jennifer Kincheloe, in exchange for a review containing my honest thoughts and opinions. Thanks, Jennifer!

Awesome debut!

Prepare for me to fan-girl all over this review. You have been warned!

I couldn’t get enough of The Secret Life of Anna Blanc from the moment I picked it up! I listened to it every moment that I had: in the car commuting to work, while at work, while running on the treadmill, out-loud while sitting at home with my husband (which made for some extremely comical discussion!). I didn’t want the book to end and I’m thrilled to learn that this is a series and book 2 is coming out at the end of this year so I can inhale more of Anna Blanc!

One of the things that immediately connected me to this book was the style. It reminded me in many ways of the early Janet Evanovich comedy/romance/mystery novels: girl is completely out of her depths trying to solve a mystery and has no idea what she is doing. Beyond that, Kincheloe’s writing style is full of wit and comedic timing. I was constantly laughing either at what one of the characters was doing or how they were saying it.

Anna is delightfully naïve in the world of the underbelly of society, which makes sense because she comes from money. But she wants to get out and see more of the world, not sit around and wait to get old while her father refuses to find a man for her to marry. She is bold and daring and comes up with an over-the-top way to become employed as a police matron at the local police station. Is she qualified? Not in the slightest. Does she get the job because the man hiring her thinks she is nice to look at? Absolutely.

But despite her lack of skills, somehow Anna manages to get the job done…with a lot help from both willing and unwilling friends and accomplices. Officer Joe Singer is one of those sometimes willing and unwilling friends. Thinking back on it now, he really reminds me a lot of Luke from Gilmore Girls: totally in love with the heroine and will do anything to help her, but will go out of his way to make it seem like a hardship and be grouchy about doing it. I loved how Kincheloe played Anna and Joe off of each other and their conversations were some of the best of the book. The author really knows how to write banter between two people who are so at odds with each other but totally into one another.

Oh, and speaking of the writing – hands down, the best parts were when we get inside Anna’s head and what she is thinking, especially when it comes to romance where she is a complete novice. In terms of what happens in the book, it’s no more than PG-13, but Anna’s thoughts are hilarious in where she takes these rendezvous. (It’s even more hilarious when your husband walks into the room when one of these segments is playing out loud and he abruptly walks back out of the room! I credit the author with some entertaining conversations that arose from this over the rest of the week.)

Beyond the mystery storyline, there is a lot to be said about women, their rights, and how they are perceived during this time. Anna attends a rally for women’s right to vote (really just because she wants to do something sensational), which gets her arrested and infuriates her father. On the job there is a lot of sexist remarks made toward Anna or spoken in front of her (lots of conversations about going to the horse stables with Joe and what that means, true or not). Her father and fiancé are appalled with her antics and want her to be well behaved – she even ends up with a bevy of chaperones and the lengths she goes to in order to get around them are hilarious. Then beyond Anna, there is the whole element of the brothel girls and how the deaths of these girls is handled and how these women are treated. It was all very well integrated into the novel as a whole.

I cannot wait for book 2 to be released and will be on my auto-buy list as I had the most fantastic time reading this book. This is an EXCELLENT debut from this author and I have and will continue to highly recommend this book to everyone I talk with.

Audiobook Impressions:

You know how I was fan-girling hard above? It continues here too!

This was one of THE best audio productions I have listened to and I am even more impressed as it appears it was published by the author, because the quality is that of one of the big name audiobook publishers. It is excellently narrated. Moira Quirk is someone that would now lead me to pick up a book I’m not even interested in because she could interest me in it through her performance (believe me, I have already went and shelved a few of her other works in my Audible wishlist that are paranormal in genre, which isn’t my typical thing). And a performance it truly is. Quirk doesn’t just read the novel, but imbues Kincheloe’s characters with even more life. As I stated above, Kincheloe wrote some amazing characters that I loved, but Quirk brings out their complete nature to where you feel like they are standing in the room next to you. Yes, each character has their own unique voice, but many narrators do that. However, Quirk not only brings a different voice, but you can envision their mannerisms as well just from the way they are speaking. I’m not sure how she does this, but whatever it is, keep doing it! There is quite the range of nationalities and type of personalities in this novel and Quirk makes them all feel truly real, not cookie cutter or stereotyped. And there is singing! Actual singing! That is one of the things that always disappoints me is when a part that is clearly intended to be sung is instead simply read. And while I know that there are often legitimate reasons this has to be done, it does take away from the experience of the book and colors my perception of it.

Loved the book, loved the production, loved the narrator! Go pick up this book in print (if you don’t listen to books), but I HIGHLY encourage you to check out this audiobook production, it is FANTASTIC and you will not regret it!

A ridiculously funny book. Excellent narration.

At 12 hours and 45 minutes, this is one long book and I wasn’t sure I’d finish but Anna Blanc’s spunk brought to voice by Moira Quirk kept me going right to the end. If you, like me enjoy the humour in words, this will be 12 hours of laughs (45 minutes you might just hold it back).

Entertaining romp with a wannabe female detective

The plot with it's twists and turns will keep you guessing till the very end.

Loved this story!

Where does The Secret Life of Anna Blanc rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Among the top!

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Secret Life of Anna Blanc?

Oh, there are so many great scenes. I especially love all her thoughts about a certain policeman that she finds irresistible.

Which character – as performed by Moira Quirk – was your favorite?

Anna Blanc! She's such a feisty gal!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Definitely!

Any additional comments?

In the end, I just want to say that Moira Quirk is a perfect narrator. I especially loved how she skillfully voiced the different characters from. There is a fellow called Joe Singer in the book, and he often sings and she does the lines so perfect!

Highly Entertaining

Reminiscent of the Thin Man movies, I really love this first novel and hope it evolves into a series. After listening to myriad dark detective novels this was a welcomed respite.

A fascinating slice of history told with humor!

Set in 1907 Los Angeles, Anna Blanc is at the top of the social ladder. She has pretty French clothes, a handsome fiance, in vogue friends, and fancy makeup. Yet she longs for more. She secretly reads detective novels and desperately wants to have at least one murder mystery adventure before her life is sealed with a wedding. She comes up with a scheme to become an assistant police matron at the Los Angeles police department, assuming an alias (Anna Holmes) and a rough spun ugly uniform that doesn’t quite hide her lovely form. Pretty soon, Anna learns that this is more than just a fancy whim of hers; real people need her help and are affected by what she does or doesn’t do. However, if she’s discovered by either her father or her fiance, she stands to lose quite a bit. She has to choose between being an obedient daughter and fiance or catching a killer who is murdering prostitutes.

This was such a delightful book! I really enjoyed it. I thought it would be a bit intense, it being a murder mystery and historical fiction. The book does have those qualities, but the author took things a step further and threw in plenty of well-timed humor. First, Anna’s character is a strange yet compelling mix of innocence, curiosity, determination, and sleuthing ability. She’s had a mostly sheltered life so the salty atmosphere of the mostly male police force and the even saltier streets continuously fascinate her. She’s quick to learn, except when it comes to deciphering the reasons for the scowls she gets from certain coworkers.

There’s plenty of sexual innuendos throughout the story. Anna, being nearly completely innocent, misses the full meaning of most of them. Occasionally, another character will take a bit of pity on her and explain things. I also loved the hit and miss budding romance between her and fellow police officer Joe Singer. She first meets him when he’s dressed as a woman and very obviously drunk. Meanwhile, she has to be all proper when passing time with her fiance, Edgar. She wants him to be a little naughty and steal a kiss or two, but he’s all about being proper even when no one’s looking. I especially loved the arrow collar man advertisements and the interesting bit about how hysterical women are clinically treated. Funny and also a little window into the past.

As for the murder mystery, that had me guessing right up to the end. I felt like I had good company though as Anna was guessing up to the end as well. There was also a side mystery concerning a serial rapist that Anna helps close. These mysteries provide a backdrop to show how men and women were treated quite differently in the early 1900s, no matter their social status or skills. For instance, I didn’t realize that women could be arrested for smoking in public at that time. The humor keeps this from being a brow beating on social justice for women.

I’m definitely looking forward to Book 2. By the end of this book, Anna’s life has quite changed from where she started out. She’s a determined young lady but also still a bit prim, a bit focused on expensive girly things, and a bit innocent on how the majority of people live. I’m sure finding out how she handles a bit more first-hand knowledge will make a good story.

I received a free copy of this book via The Audiobookworm.

The Narration: Moira Quirk did an excellent job with this book. She was perfect for Anna. I loved how she handled the humor and the innuendos. I would love to hear her blooper reel on this one! I also thought she did a great job with the regional accents, giving a stiff upper lip to the socialites and a more salty accent to masses.

Fun Murder Mystery

I chose to listen to this audiobook after receiving a free copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

Anna Blanc is a young woman who is spoiled by her rich father but she is headstrong and independent so he tries to keep her under control by cancelling her allowance and having her constantly watched by a chaperone. She decides to apply to be a matron at a police station because she thinks it would be fun and she's bored.

Anna is a conundrum. She's been brought up to believe that she's better than the lower class, that she's supposed to get married and take care of her husband, and if she gets bored, she should do volunteer work. But Anna wants to be a detective and she shows that she has a big heart when she tries on her own to solve the murders of prostitutes. She treats everyone she meets the same and proves that she is ahead of her time in many ways.

I enjoyed listening to The Secret Life of Anna Blanc. I never knew what Anna was going to do next. Moira Quirk did a very good job of narrating. Her voice is easy to listen to and she had appropriate pauses, inflection, etc.

If you enjoy a good mystery along with a fun female character, you'll love Anna Blanc.

An inspiration

I was provided the audiobook for this story in exchange for an honest review and as part of this lovely blog tour.

The story captivated me from the very beginning. The first few chapters can offer an idea of what type of character Anna really is and the narrator definitely did an amazing job to give voice to these traits. What is absolutely fabulous about the book is that not only the story is great and keeps you focused from start to end, but also the setting, the character and the writing style (+ in my case, the narrator).

The action is quite present throughout the pages, since Miss Blanc has a tendency to always start trouble, or better to look for it. She plans to elope, she gets mixed with women that can only ruin her reputation, she wants a man’s job at a police station and, as if these weren’t enough, she starts her own investigation. I just love this woman! There are twists all over the pages and there just isn’t one moment of boredom! So from plot point of view, it has all my points 

What really made me give 5 stars to this book was actually the character. The author did an amazing job at creating Anna Blanc – a strong woman, one that knows her values and believes she can do anything she sets her mind to. All these while trying to maintain a reputation of a decent lady. In a time where women were regarded as inferior to men, in time where they started challenging for voting rights, Anna is a great symbol of what means to be determined, what means to fight for your dreams and not feel beneath the people around (be those men or women).

As for the narrator, I was mentioning in the beginning that she is absolutely great! Her voice is intelligible and she does a great job at making the difference between characters. But to top that, I believe she is fit for Anna’s character. I don’t know, but Moira has that voice I imagined for a person like Anna (not sure if this has much sense). Oh, and the emotions are also very nicely captured!

All in all, I loved this audiobook and I am lucky to be part of this tour. This is one of those books that can be an inspiration. For me at least it was. I’ve been having some tough days lately and Anna reminded me that we can me strong, we can still follow our dreams. Although I am not a convinced feminist (as I do believe men are better at some things), the story has more to it. I recommend it and I hope you like it at least as much as I did!

Anna Blanc has gumption

Anna Blanc has gumption. Moxie. She’s a socialite moonlighting at a police department. Trying to solve a string of murders. Surrounded by men who find women to be useless. At least as police detective.

"It was a cock shame being a woman. Being right and having the facts meant nothing if one wore frocks. Even if they were very nice frock, which her matron’s uniform was not."

I had some issues with Anna at the beginning of the novel. She is rather naive and silly about the world. But she’s been protected her whole life. She is really looking for some adventure in her life. She shows some real growth throughout the novel. Maturing and figuring out what it is that she wants. Or really, who. And she isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Which is a great trait in any character!

I found the novel as a whole completely delightful. And hilarious.

"Anna kneed him in his secret man parts. Not hard. But that was the nice thing about secret man parts. They were man’s Achilles heal."

I’m hoping that the novel was intended to be funny. Sometimes my sense of humor is a bit off the wall. It’s the sarcasm that gets me every time.

Anna Blanc, the novel and the character, was also more sexually suggestive than I was expecting. Including Anna cutting out a rather suggestive advertisement which she brandishes in front of her father. There were quite a few scenes that had me blushing. And wondering how sexually liberated women were in the 1900’s.

I wholly enjoyed the narration of Anna Blanc. Ms. Quirk did a great job with the different characters. I could easily distinguish each one. She even sings as one of the characters!

After finishing The Secret Life of Anna Blanc, I’m ready for to be a part of her next adventure!



I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Jennifer Kincheloe. The gift of this audiobook did not affect my review of it.

The Secret Life of Anna Blanc

The Story: Anna Blanc is a high society lady – though she is very much one to break the mould. She is quite a complex character, but one that grows on you as the story unfolds. Living in LA at the turn of the century it is a very different time for woman, and Anna would love nothing more than to be a detective, but she knows that will never happen yet somehow she ends up becoming a police matron for the Los Angeles Police Department. And by doing that job she discovers a string of murders realting to borthel girls, that the police are seemingly brushing them off as suicide. I loved the story and the trail that Anna follows to discover who is killing the girls – I had no idea who it was going to be, at one point I was sure the author was going to reveal it as someone I had come to love only to have a twist turn me in the other direction. A great story and I can’t wait to see what is store for Anna Blanc next. The Narration: Moira Quirk was brilliant at bringing this story to life, her accents and male as well as female characters were flawless. She really brought the era and Anna’s character to life and the whole production was seamless and flawless